Eyes of the Dead
by darkpotatoes
Summary: 4 friends are talking, and come up with a plan for the apocalypse. They never knew they might actually have to use it. My own version of the show The Walking Dead. Rating subject to possible change.
1. Prologue: Eyes of the Living

To understand the story, you must first understand the characters. With that in mind, you must understand that not all characters are all 2-D. In fact, most are so deep, you don't know their true feelings till after the words "the end". So, let me tell you of the characters of this particular story.

The people I speak of are not normal. They all have their quirks, and that is what drew them together. There are 2 guys, and 2 girls. Sure, there are a few mutual friends here and there, but these 4 people were a tight-knit group. That was all they needed. First off, we have Zachary, a 13 year old 8Th Grader. Zachary wasn't what you would call "shy". He was the farthest person from "shy" in the world. He was loud, he was friendly, he was tall (seriously, 5'11") and he was loyal to a fault. Get on his good side, and he will stand by you through thick and thin, through hell or high water. Threaten or bully his friends, and he will make sure you don't see the light of day again. He was also a nice guy, emotionally mellow, you never really saw him sad, or angry, or anything other than happy, really. If you did, you better run, because he will either blow up at you, or break down crying, the latter happening extremely rarely. He was full of energy, and could brighten up even the rainiest day (the ironic thing was he loved the rain). He was also a bit on the chunky side, not enough to be considered "fat", but noticeable. He was smart, but not an ass about it. He was white, and had long dark brown slightly wavy hair in a bowl haircut, and had brown eyes, that oddly held a deep pain that no one could really explain. He was funny, and loved to make people laugh. But most of all, he loved his girlfriend, Katherine, the second character.

Katherine was 13 as well, and in the same grade (all of them were in the 8Th). She, like her boyfriend, wan't shy at all. While not as loud or gregarious (A.N.: means opposite of shy), she was certainly an extrovert. She was also a bit on the chunky side, but Zach did't care. He loved her just as much as she did. She was sarcastic, and maybe the most quirky person in the group (besides Zach), and in reality, was the reason they all met. She used to be a bit of an introvert, especially when you first meet her, but if you get to know her, she will open up to you. With her dark past that no one really knows about, she is a bit of a mystery. She had long brown hair, down to her mid back, and was of average height, around 5'4". She was white too, and loved to laugh. She thought little of herself, but she loved Zach nonetheless. In fact, it was Zach that often got her smile all the way to her eyes.

Serena was the oldest in the group, being 14 (her friends sometimes called her a "cougar", as her boyfriend, Jared, was 13), and was the shortest one in the group. She was best friends with Katherine and Zach, and was one of Katherine's oldest friends. She was only 5 feet tall, and was at least a half of a foot shorter than Jared (who was a respectable 5'9"). She, like Katherine, was a more sarcastic person than most, often times coming off as cold or unkind, when in reality she was very hyper and energetic, one of the most crazy people you will ever meet. She was very skinny, but not dangerously or oddly so, but still skinny. She had wavy, dirty blond hair that reached to her shoulder blades, and dark brown eyes. She also had the patience of a rock (or she had no patience whatsoever), so her fuse was lit often and quickly, often blowing up over somewhat unreasonable things. She also had a VERY high metabolism, to the point where she could eat a 75 ounce steak with no fat gained. She also had a mysterious past, and low self esteem, which was slowly being mended by Zach and Jared.

And for the last person in the group, Jared. Jared was Serena's boyfriend, and Zach's best friend. He was the quietest person of the group, but considering who he hung out with, that wasn't very quiet. No one really knew anything about him, just a few snippets here and there. He was very eccentric, but probably the most normal person in the group. He was tallish at 5'9", was very mexican, and had very straight long black hair.

These four people only needed each other. But they would never have guessed how true that would be over the next few years.


	2. Eyes of the Dead

"Do we really need to do this right now?" said an exasperated Zach. He and the group were at their middle school, which was already hellish enough, and for the past 3 weeks, Serena had been going on and on about how "the zombies are coming", and "we need a plan". Katherine and Zach had been trying to not get into the conversation, mainly because they didn't really think that the zombies were coming anytime soon, if they even existed.

"Yes, we do! Do you WANT to die when the apocalypse happens?!" screamed an annoyed Serena. It seemed like Zach was just begging to die! Didn't he see that this plan would save their lives? He was so lazy!

Zach ignored her, and looked to Jared. "Hey, could I copy you're math homework? I totally forgot to do mine."

Jared looked at his friend incredulously. "Really, dude? I called you like 8 times to remind you."

"You KNOW I never answer my phone, Jared." Zach said.

Serena turned to them, an angry look on her face. "Are you two even LISTENING TO ME?!"

"Look, Serena, we get it, you think that the apocalypse is going to come down like a sledgehammer on us, but I think that we have a few more years till that happens. We can just breathe for now, don't you think?" Katherine reasoned. She, like Zach, thought Serena was being a bit obsessive over this. She didn't think that the end of the world was THAT serious of a threat to them. She thought they would be long gone by the time the world came to an end.

Serena finally had enough. "How about NO! It could come at any time and we need to be prepared! I don't want you guys to die within 5 minutes. Now you can either come with me in my 'spiky bulldozer truck thing of death' or help me come up with a better freaking plan!" Everyone jumped a bit at that.

"Look, guys, let's just try, okay? I've already heard this about 50 times. Let's just amuse her, okay?" a very tired Jared said. He was trying to keep everyone happy, but failing.

Zach and Katherine sighed. They realized that Serena wasn't going to let this go anytime soon, so, with a defeated sigh, they said "Fine…..what's the "big plan"?"

Serena got a smug look on her face, and said "Okay, so I was thinking about how they did it in Zombie land, and…"

Zach immediately knew what she was going to say, and cut her off. "And you want to be Tallahassee, we get it, it's your favorite movie, but if you're going to force us into this, can't you at least be serious about it?"

"I AM being serious!" yelled an indignant Serena.

"Could've fooled me…" mumbled Katherine. She was getting a little more than a little annoyed with Serena.

"Well, do YOU guys have any ideas, if mine are so horrible?" Serena asked, trying to defend her Tallahassee-ness. She was very proud of her plan, and wanted to defend it.

"Actually, yeah, I do." Zach said, crushing Serena's dream. If Zach had a plan, hers was sure to go off the playbook. As much as she hated to admit it, Zach was actually pretty smart, and was good at long term thinking, and problem solving.

"Oh really? Then tell us, oh smart one." Nick, one of the "filler characters" said. He was another Mexican, with short black hair that was always gelled with a spike in the front (think JB's haircut). He was about 5'4", and had a pockmarked face. He was new to the group, and absolutely LOVED death note, an anime that Zach didn't like so much and often bashed, and Nick had a grudge the size of Texas (where they were all from) because of it.

"Well, all of us have our own little weapons cache. I have my uncles gun closet, and my sword closet, Katherine has her OWN gun closet, not to mention her dads, Serena has an overbearing, paranoid, over protective dad, which sort of guarantees that she has the most weapons out of all of us, and Jared….well, no one knows what Jared has. We just need to get all our stuff, and we will meet here at school."

Jared, who was Zach's best friend, and knew his quirks all too well, said "Zach, how the hell will we get all of our stuff here, when you alone have 50 pounds of equipment, and you have the least amount of stuff? Not to mention, I don't know about you, but I live like 3 miles away. How will we all get here?"

Serena was beaming at her boyfriend, reminding herself to tell him what a good job he did later (and I mean tell him. Not do something you shouldn't do. Pervs).

Zach was ready for such a question though. "Dude, did you forget I drive?" He said with a sly grin. He was only 13, but he already knew how to drive, and he was quite good. The others were privy to his knowledge.

Serena was still a bit skeptical. "You mean we have to go around in your rapist van?" While Zach knew how to drive, his vehicle of choice was… not the most popular mode of transportation. His car was a big, ford E-350 v8 white van. It was affectionately referred to as the "rapist van". Zach accepted this, but still liked the big thing. And besides, he had a great argument.

"Serena," he said in a reassuring tone, "look at it this way. We are four people, five counting Nick, so we need a larger vehicle, especially if we have a lot of stuff to take with us, which we do. We are also talking about the apocalypse, the zombie one specifically. We might need to go through some heavily populated areas, where zombies are thick. The van…"

Serena cut him off this time. "RAPIST van, you mean."

"Okay, the RAPIST van is quite large, and can be used as a battering ram. And to answer your question," he said pointing to Jared, "I can put all our stuff in the back. Not to mention, we are not the only people that are going to survive. We are going to eventually going to meet someone. They might need help."

Serena saw another flaw in the plan she could exploit. "Are you saying that we pick up every person we see? I know you're a humanitarian, but that is too much."

"I'm not saying we save every person. But there are bound to be people of interest that could help us." Zach explained. He had thought this out quite well for a plan that was made up in 5 minutes, and Katherine noticed. She was proud of her boyfriend, and hugged him to show it.

Serena sighed. "Fine, we'll go with that." She said, disappointed at her missed chance to be Tallahassee. Zach saw this, and felt bad for shooting down her plan.

"You know…." Zach said, piquing Serena's interest, "just because we go with my plan doesn't mean you can't be Tallahassee."

She absolutely lit up. "Really?! You'd let me do that?!" she all but shouted.

"Of course. If you want, ill even spray paint the van black, and put a 3 on the side." Zach said. Serena was elated that she could be her favorite movie character. Zach put up a fist, and she fist-bumped him as hard as she could.

"Awesome. So we have a plan. Now, Jared, about that homework…." Zach said. Everyone groaned and face-palmed at the same time. Same old Zach…


	3. Eyes of the Damned

Zach was walking home from his bus stop. It was the same day as when he and his friends made the plan. He was tired, not only from having to make the plan, but from the day in general. The kids on his bus were arguing more than usual, he was trying to get his math grade up, just a lot of stuff. But when he walked into his house, with everything trashed, he was instantly awake. He walked in the door, and said "Mom, I'm home."

He opened his eyes. They immediately widened the biggest they could. The kitchen was destroyed. The trash was everywhere, food was everywhere, and the fridge was in pieces. He got out of his shock, and immediately got his 2 9mm pistols from his jacket (the kid was paranoid). "Mom?" he said in a much more serious tone. He had a really bad feeling. Then again, so would you if you had to step over your fridge to get to your living room. "You there?"

He rounded a corner, and walked into the living room. He found his mom. What was left of her, anyway. She looked like she had gone through a meat grinder. Her skin was ashen gray, and she had bones sticking out all over her body. Her neck, back, arms, and legs were all bent at unnatural angles. Her skin had been torn off in multiple places. She was barely recognizable. The blood bath she was in didn't help.

"MOM!" Zach yelled distraught. He might not be on the best terms with his mother, but she was still his mother. "Mom, are you alive! Oh shit, I need to get….,"

She sat up abruptly. "What the _hell_?!" Zach yelped in surprise. In her condition, she should barely be able to _breathe,_ much less _sit up!_ She turned to him, and what he saw freaked him out even more. Her eyes….were stark white, and dead. In every sense of the word, her eyes were dead to this world. Unseeing. Emotionless. Unintelligent. _Hungry. _

"M-m-mom?" Zach stuttered fearfully. He had taken down 2 robbers in the past year, but a person back from the dead…..was just… unreal. His mother lunged at him, ready to tear his head off. He got up, and stumbled back. His face was drawn in fear, his mouth agape, and eyes wide. He put the pistols up to her face, but he just couldn't pull the trigger. He just couldn't shoot his mom.

"Mom, get a hold of yourself! PLEASE!" Zach pleaded with his mother. His pleas fell on deaf ears. She threw herself at Zach, and he pulled the trigger. The bullet tore through her skull, and out the back. She fell, and twitched. That was the last time Zach saw his mother move.

"Mom…..I'm sorry. I couldn't save you." With tears streaming down his face, he turned to the hallway. His 2 little sisters walked out. Relief flooded his features. "Gaby, Michaela, thank god you're okay!" Zach gushed. They ran towards each other. Zach ran to hug his sisters. His sisters, though, ran for very different reasons. They ran to tear their brother apart. Their white eyes gleaming, they lunged for Zach's arm. They felt something in their mouths, and clamped down. What they bit, they realized, was not human flesh. It was cold, hard, and steel.

They bit down on their brothers pistols. "No….not you too….it can't be." Zach mumbled. He looked at his sisters with hopelessness. With the barrels of his pistols down his dead sisters' throats, he pulled the triggers. His sisters fell, with their already dead eyes loosing what little light they had. With his bangs covering his eyes, he squatted, and closed his sisters' open eyes. He stood up, and walked with his head down, to his parents' bedroom. He found his father in much the same condition his mother in. His father turned his head, and was met with a Tokarev in his face. Zach fired, and his father's head rolled, blood spattering the bed. Zach closed his fathers' eyes, and moved to the rest of the house.

He found the rest of the bodies in the back yard. His 2nd oldest sister, brother-in-law, and grandparents. All of them were dead. All of them slaughtered. He shot them all in the head. They stayed dead. But when he got to the last body, it was still alive. Truly alive, not the cursed half life the rest had. His eldest sister, Denise. His pregnant, and absolute favorite sibling, lay on her side, hugging her 2 barely breathing daughters. She saw Zach, and with a look of hope, she said "The others…..?"

Zach responded quickly and quietly. "They're dead. Mom, Michaela, Gaby, Dad, Anna (his 2nd oldest sister), Beni (his grandmother), Ed (grandfather). All of them."

Her look of hope turned to one of dread. "And Timmy (denises' husband, and Zach's brother-in-law)?"

He looked at her with helplessness. "Him too. They got everyone. I'm sorry." He said solemnly.

Denise burst into tears. With her head in her hands, she broke down in front of Zach. After a moment, he knelt next to her, and hugged her. She wrapped her arms around him as hard as she could. She cried for what seemed like hours. Finally, she spoke. "Please…. Zach.. Just end it…please. I've lost my husband, my mother, father, grandparents, and my daughters, just end it…. I beg you…just let it all end." Denise was begging by the end, looking at her brother with a pleading look. "Please." She whispered.

He looked at his sister with shock in his eyes. "B-but, what about me? Yourself? Ava? Sophia? (Her 2 daughters) What about your unborn kid, Dmitri?" He tried to reason, more for himself than her. He didn't think that he could kill a living, breathing, _human _being. It was one thing to kill his dead family members, and he could barely do it. It was another thing _entirely_ to kill a living one, especially one who was pregnant.

She moved her arms from around her girls. "Other than you and me….they're dead. Even Dmitri." She was right. 5 year old Ava and 2 year old Sophie had stopped breathing entirely. Zach tried feeling for Dmitri. Nothing. Not even a heartbeat from the little guy. "Please, Zach. _Please._" Denise outright begged her brother. He finally gave in, and dejectedly raised his guns, a Ruger 9mm, and a Tokarev 9mm, to point at his sisters' head. He tried to pull the trigger. He tried as hard as he could. He really couldn't. He let a breath out that he didn't know he was holding. "I can't do it. I'm sorry." He said.

Next thing he knew, the Tokarev was out of his hands. His eyes snapped open. The first thing he saw was his favorite sister, the one who always listened to him, who always backed him up, and got him up when he was down….shoot herself in the head.

"NOOOOOOOO!" he screamed . His usually warm, chocolate eyes were black as the night, and they promised pain. He shook with rage. This….whatever it was….took not only his mother, and his baby sisters, but his entire family. Whatever it was, it took what was most precious to him. Whatever it was, it would pay_._ _Dearly._

He took in a huge breath, and roared out to the heavens a long, tortured bellow. When he was all done, he had screamed himself hoarse. He looked positively _murderous_. He got up, got his gun, and went back into the house. He walked to his Grandparents room, and walked into the closet. He pushed aside the clothes, and found an ornate chest, with rolling smoke patterns decorating it.

He opened the chest, and brought out the contents: 2 beautifully crafted katanas, one with a dark mahogany handle, a red sheath with black crack like lines all over it, and a pitch black blade. On the sheath was the Japanese character (called Kanji if his memory served him well) for "Hell". The other had a bright, ivory handle, a blue sheath with white crack like lines all over it, and a pure white blade. On its sheath was the Kanji for "Heaven".

Taking out the rest of the chests ordinance, he took out the swords' accompanying wakizashi, a ceremonial short sword that always comes with a katana, with a brown handle, a light brown sheath with dark brown cracks, like the 2 swords, a normal, stainless steel blade, and the kanji for "Earth" on its sheath. Then he picked up his grandfathers "walking stick" as he called it, another beautifully crafted weapon, this one a 4 foot Bo staff. His grandfather said it was "very special", but he had yet to see anything other than a Bo staff with dragon carvings on it. Finally, he got the holster that would hold all of the swords, the "heaven" and "hell" swords in an "X" on his back, and the "Earth" wakizashi horizontally on the small of his back.

He put on the holster and swords, picked up the staff, and got the keys to the van. The only thing he needed now was black and yellow spray paint. He then proceeded to spray paint the van black, with a three on the side. He would never break anymore promises. Whether it be his old one to let Serena have her Tallahassee truck, or his new one, one that put much more weight on his shoulders: his promise, his vow, to never, _ever_, let anyone else he loved to be harmed.

To do this, he knew his current self wouldn't cut it. Out with the loud dumbass. He was no longer Zach Cayman, the name he gave himself to stop the laughing his real name gave him.

He had only one thing left to do. He dragged all of the bodies into the house, and got the gasoline and rope out. He doused his entire house with gasoline, and put what was left in the living room, with the gas still in the container. He led the rope out to the back yard, and set the rope on fire. He walked away, and got in the van. He backed the van out of the driveway, got it into the street, and started driving away. And with that, his house exploded in a ball of flame.

With that, he became what he was meant to be. He was now Zachary James Cydrek (his real last name), the strong, silent, protector of the human race. He was what he was always meant to be. He was now a warrior


	4. Eyes of the Regretful

Katherine was walking around the courtyard of the school, all of her stuff on a bench. So far, she hadn't found any zombies, but that wasn't what she was looking for. She was looking for anyone who was alive. She was holding a small Browning .22 pistol. It was a really small round, but it was what she had the most of.

"Hello? Anyone here?" She asked no one in particular. She hadn't seen anyone in the past 30 minutes, and the school was really trashed. If she didn't know better, she would have said that the school had been abandoned a decade ago. The courtyard had blood everywhere, and multiple tables were on their sides, with a lot more barricading the inside of the cafeteria. There were a couple dead bodies here and there, both of humans and of zombies. Katherine had the smarts to shoot both in the head.

She heard a loud CLANG behind her, and turned around, gun up and eyes blazing. Then she heard something she hadn't heard in a while: a real human voice. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, it's me! Put the gun down, you're scaring me!" Nick was in front of her, cowering in fear at the point of her gun.

She let out a sigh, and lowered her gun. "Nick, what the heck are you doing here? Why aren't you at home?" she said exasperatedly. She wasn't that fond of Nick for many reasons, and was hoping that he didn't think he was a part of the plan. Mind you, it's not like she wanted him dead, but it also wasn't like she really wanted him with them either.

He laughed sheepishly, while he rubbed the back of his head. "Heh, heh, I sort of have a failing grade in math…or I _did,_ anyway. I stayed for tutoring." Katherine was dumbstruck, and her face showed it. Her jaw was somewhere on the ground.

"Nick, how the heck did you survive? You don't have any weapons, and even if you did, I don't think you would have the guts to use them." She said bluntly.

"Hey! I have guts!" Nick said defensively. He was a prideful person, and didn't like it when people put him down like that. Especially since he had liked Katherine for a while. That was one of the reasons he didn't like Zach all that much.

Katherine looked at him with a skeptical look on her face. "Really? Then was I just hallucinating when Zach kicked your butt?"

Nick had a shameful look on his face, followed by a hateful scowl. He remembered that day fairly well.

_**(Flashback)**_

It was a normal day after school, and Zach, Serena, Katherine, and Jared were all walking home. Well, the girls were, anyway. Zach and Jared were just going to walk them home, and then Zach would drive Jared (He had perfected both forgery and bullshiting the police). While they walked, Serena and Katherine talked, as did Zach and Jared. They passed a small gas station. Zach looked over to his girlfriend and Serena. "Hey, Katherine (they refused to call each other pet names), you guys want anything? I'm getting a soda from the gas station."

Katherine smiled at Zach. "Nah, I'm good." She was a little thirsty, but she knew that Zach would insist that he be the one to pay, and she only had a little more to walk to get to her house.

Zach smiled back. "Alright, what about you, Serena?"

"Yeah, I could definitely go for some pop-tarts." She admitted.

"Ok, I'll be back." He said as he kissed Katherine on the cheek. He turned to his best friend. "Jared, you wanna come with?" He silently signaled his friend, and Jared caught it.

"Sure. I need to go to the bathroom, anyway." Jared shrugged. He hugged Serena, and followed Zach to the Gas Station.

_**(With the Girls)**_

Serena waited till the boys were out of earshot, and then turned to Katherine. "Ok, now, tell me what's going on?"

Katherine looked at her friend exasperatedly. "Were you not listening when I was talking to you?"

"No. If I did, I would have given away whatever it was immediately. Now, what is it?" Serena said excitedly. She loved to make plans with her best friend.

"Okay, so you know how it's Zach's birthday in a couple of days, right?" Katherine said. Serena had an idea of where this was going, and nodded. His birthday was a day Katherine had stamped in her head, specifically so she wouldn't forget.

"Well, I was thinking what to get him, and I couldn't think of anything. I mean, what do you get a guy like Zach?"

Serena scoffed. "That's easy. Video games."

"That would have been the answer, if he had a game console." Katherine retorted

"Get him an Xbox then." Serena suggested.

"I don't have the money." Katherine said.

"Well, get him money, then." Serena tried.

Katherine scoffed. "Serena, that's what your aunt and uncle gets you, not what you get from your girlfriend! I need something that will mean something!"

Serena seemed deep in thought. "Hmm…..quite the conundrum indeed, my friend."

While that was going on, Nick (who didn't know anyone at the time), saw Katherine and Serena talking. He thought the taller one (Katherine, he doesn't know her name) was pretty cute, so he went over to talk to them

Meanwhile, Katherine was talking to Serena.

"Look, Katherine," said Serena, "why don't you get him a…"

Nick walked up to them, and cut Serena off. "Hey, cutie. I got to ask, did it hurt when you fell from heaven?" he said with a cheesy smile.

Katherine just rolled her eyes. 'Great,' she thought, 'just what I need right now.'

_**(With the guys)**_

When Zach and Jared walked away, Zach waited till they were out of earshot to start the conversation.

"Okay, so you know how its mine and Katherine's 3 month anniversary in a week?" Zach asked. Jared knew. It's been the only thing on Zach's mind for a week.

"Yeah. What about it?"

"Well, I have no idea what to do! What should I do! I don't have money to get her something!" Zach was pretty panicky. He didn't have much experience as a boyfriend, and he wanted to get at least one thing right. Jared, on the other hand, was a natural.

"Bro, all you got to do is say 'I love you' and give her a hug. Let her know you care." He said as if he was talking about the weather. It never ceased to amaze Zach how much of a godsend his best friend was sometimes.

"Are you serious?" Zach said incredulously. He had no idea that it was that easy.

"Yep. All you really have to do is memorize dates, and you are golden."

"Whew..." Zach sighed. He was scared for a moment because he thought that he was being a bad person, but he knew Jared wouldn't lie to him.

"So, you up for those sodas?" Jared said. He really didn't have to ask.

"Hell yeah, I'm up for sodas. Let's go." Zach and Jared went off whistling.

_**(Back with the girls)**_

"Good god, when was the last time anyone used that pickup line, seriously?" Katherine said. This guy was getting on her nerves really quick. But the guy was persistent.

"Oh, come on, don't be like that. Why don't you give me your number?" He said sleazily.

"She already has a boyfriend, douche bag. Go away." Serena started to hate this guy as well.

"Oh, really?" He said haughtily. "I'd like to see this guy. Heh, he's probably not much." He was fairly sure that he could be a lot better than this guy.

Zach chose that moment to come up. "Who's not much?" he said, genuinely curious, as he sipped his Sprite through a straw.

"And you are…..?" Nick said arrogantly. It was Serena who spoke up.

"This, random douche bag, is her boyfriend." Nick looked at Zach incredulously. He was looking at a fairly unassuming guy, with no real significance in his mind. Zach held his hand out to Nick.

"Hello, random douche bag. I am Zach. Why are you a douche bag again?" Nick sweatdropped.

"He tried to get me to go on a date with him." Katherine said.

"And this makes him a douche bag why? He didn't know you were taken." Zach didn't want to have a conflict here. Nick, in all his douche bagness, decided to speak up.

"Yeah, I did. I also knew I could take you any day." He said, getting up in Zach's face. Zach, on the other hand, had an uncaring look on his face as he sipped his soda. Jared stood in the back laughing. He found this pretty damn funny.

"Is that so?" Zach said.

"Yeah, it is." Nick remarked as he violently threw the Sprite out of Zach's hands. Zach's eyes followed his precious carbonated beverage as it flew across the street, into oncoming traffic. He sighed.

"That, sir, was my drink. I do hope you plan on giving me my hard earned money back." Zach replied coolly.

"Oh, do you, now?" Nick said with a patronizing grin. "What are you gonna do?"

All it took was 2 seconds. 2 seconds, and Nick was already on the ground. When Nick said that, Zach responded with a roundhouse kick to the face, followed by an elbow to the gut. Nick was planted firmly on his ass.

As an answer to his question, Jared spoke, while handing Serena her pop tarts. "Well…THAT, for one."

Nick got up with his smirk gone, and a snarl replacing it. "You're gonna pay for that!" He growled as he rushed Zach. Zach merely waited for Nick to come to him. Nick threw a punch, and Zach blocked with his left forearm, his right already moving for Nicks face. His fist met Nick's nose in a crunch of cartilage and bone, blood spewing out of the broken schnozz. Nick staggered back in pain. He never saw the foot rocketing towards his face.

With one final straight kick to the face, the fight was over. Nick flew back onto the pavement, and stayed there, unconscious. Katherine cheered, and hugged her boyfriend. Jared was giving Zach thumbs up.

Serena, on the other hand, was looking at Zach in shock. She had no idea that Zach could do that.

"Since when have you been able to do that?!" She yelled. Zach didn't react to her surprise.

"Eh, about 7 years, give or take." He replied. This just gave Serena a bigger shock and a fish-gasping-for-air look on her face.

"So, off we go!" Zach said, as he pointed into the air and marched off. Katherine giggled at her boyfriends antics, and followed, Jared and Serena not far behind. Nick woke up 5 minutes later, with a huge headache, and a pretty big grudge to go along with it.

_**(Flashback End)**_

"Yeah…," Nick said as he rubbed his still sore nose, "Don't remind me."

It was at that moment that some undead rounded the corner sluggishly. They spotted the 2 humans, and rushed towards their next potential meal. With a shriek, Nick cowered behind Katherine, who rolled her eyes at the cowardly boy. She raised her firearm and dispatched the small group with more than a bit of ease.

"There," she said with a scowl, "They're gone. You can stop hiding now." She heard a gurgle from across the courtyard, and a weak voice spoke up. "K-k-Katherine?"

She gasped, and ran for the source, praying she was wrong in her guess of who it was. Her prayers were unanswered, as she saw who was lying there. It was Michael, another one of their close friends. He had short, greasy black hair, a pale complexion, and a strange brown birthmark covering most of his right cheek. That was not what caught Katherine's attention, though. What did was the mangled form of the rest of his body.

He had no legs anymore. They had been ripped off, and discarded or digested, she didn't know which. His chest was ripped open, exposing his flesh. He was more pale than usual for obvious reasons. Katherine was holding back tears. "Michael…..oh my god…." She whimpered. He gave her a pleading look.

"Please….. (Cough)….end it…..please..."

Katherine put a shaking hand up to her mouth and clenched her eyes shut, not wanting to believe what she was seeing. A sob escaped her lips as tears began to flow. She was too scared to look.

"Damn. They got you too, huh?" Said a voice. A voice the 2 recognized. It was Zach. They both turned as best they could, and saw him.

He looked like a war veteran, right down to the dead look in his eyes. He was wearing black pants and a slim black tee-shirt. On his back were an assortment of weapons: 2 katanas, a wakizashi, and a broadsword **(explained later)**, and in his hand was a wooden staff. There was a black combat knife strapped to his thigh. His hair was unkempt and frazzled, looking as if it had never even heard the word "brush". Even his face, marred by a gash on his right cheek, which was bandaged, looked like it was made of stone.

Katherine immediately ran towards him, and tackled him, crying into his chest. His face became softer along with his eyes, as he let a small smile come through. He rubbed her back soothingly, whispering kind words in her ear. They stayed like that until they heard coughing. Michael looked a lot worse for wear. He looked at Zach pleadingly. "P-p-please."

Zach knew what he wanted before he even spoke. He solemnly got up, setting Katherine down, looking decidedly haggard, as if he had done this one too many times. He walked up to his prone friend. He reached for his Ruger.

"See you later…..bro." And with a bang, Michael was gone. Zach sent up a silent prayer. '_Requiescant in pace__** (rest in peace)**__, Michael._'

Zach turned towards Katherine, and walked towards her. A question rose in her throat. "T-t-t-the others?"

He pointed a bit past her. "Serena's already in the van. We still have to get Jared."

Katherine let out a sigh of relief. She had already lost her mother and, more recently, Michael. She didn't need more people dead.

"So, how's everything here?" Zach asked. He had other friends at school, and hoped that they were okay.

"Well," She said in a shaky voice, "I found Nick a little while ago. He should still be right over there." She pointed to the courtyard, where, true to her word, Nick was. Sometime during the conversation, he had passed out, and he was lying on the ground. Zach sweatdropped.

"Great…" Zach said in a sarcastic tone. He didn't need Nick being stupid right now, or anytime in the future. "You find anyone else?"

"No, I just got here, and found Nick." Katherine said, shaking her head. Zach nodded.

"Alright, I'll go get Serena, and we can go look for others. Sound good?"

"Yeah." She nodded her head. Suddenly, she stopped. "Wait, Zach."

Zach turned back to her, with a questioning look on his face. Katherine laid a light peck on his cheek, and hugged him as tight as she could. Zach started to blush. "What's all this for?" It wasn't very often this happened. She simply hugged him tighter, and whispered "For living." She smiled lightly. Zach did the same, and walked toward the van with Katherine. She started looking for the large vehicle, but couldn't find it.

"Hey, where did you park?" Zach pointed at a Black van with a yellow spray-painted 3 on the side. Katherine looked at her boyfriend like he was crazy, which he probably was.

"You really made the Tallahassee Truck for Serena?" He just closed his eyes and nodded with a sigh.

"Yeah. I promised myself that I would always keep my promises. This was one of them."

He opened the side door of the van. Serena looked out at him from the middle seat. "You find her?"

"Yep. Now we are gonna look for others." Zach replied.

"What about Jared?" Serena asked worriedly. She didn't know if he was okay or not. Katherine scoffed at that.

"He's fine. I mean, I found _Nick_ here, and he was still alive. If Nick was able to stay alive, Jared will have no problem."

Serena was a bit apprehensive, but climbed out nonetheless. Zach slammed the door closed, and the 3 survivors started towards the school.

As they were walking, Katherine had a question for Zach.

"Where did you get all the swords?" Zach glanced in her direction with a sad look.

"My grandpa. He gave me the katanas, wakizashi, and staff." His voice was tight, as if he was trying to play off the fact that he was close to tears. Katherine caught it, and worried for him. She knew he hated to cry in front of people. Even she had only seen him cry once, and that was when his mom had almost died.

"And the huge broadsword on your back, and knife on your thigh?" Serena asked. Zach just sighed, and started telling her the story behind them.

_**(Flashback)**_

Zach was driving on the very deserted highway. It seemed the rest of the world was hit pretty hard, too. Empty shells of once shiny cars lay all over the side of the road, giving the world a very desolate look, a look unbefitting a world that had only started to end a few hours ago. All of San Antonio seemed to be deserted _**(San Antonio, Texas is where the story starts)**_, even the boardwalk and Alamo areas.

Zach wasn't paying much attention to that at the moment. He had a set plan that he needed to follow. First on his list, gathering supplies. He had already stopped by a local supermarket and gotten food. Now all he needed was more weapons. And he knew just where to go. His cousin David and Uncle Glenn were both in the Marines, and had a large closet filled to the breaking point with tons of guns. Now he just had to remember how to _find _the damn place.

"God damnit, where the hell is the turn?!...oh, there it is." If you couldn't tell already, he was a bit on edge.

He turned onto the street, and drove through a mostly uninhabited neighborhood. When he finally got to his destination, a trashed cul-de-sac, he winced. Cars were on fire, trash cans on their sides, stray animals and people gutted and dead. 'I just hope I'm not too late.' Thought Zach. He pulled out his Tokarev and walked toward a red brick house with a white roof. A small, circular window on the second floor looked a bit cracked, and the door looked like it was barricaded. He moved for the door, and was surprised to find it unlocked and with no resistance opened the door.

With a feeling of dread, he crossed the threshold of the house. "Uncle Glenn? David? Greg? Anyone home?" He wasn't actually expecting any answer, so when a shaky voice called out "Over here," he almost jumped out of his skin.

After he calmed his racing nerves, he followed the sound of the voice, and walked into the kitchen. He found his cousin Greg in the fetal position against the counter. Greg was 16 years old, and was about 6'4". He had dirty blonde hair in an indie boy style. His face was full of moderate acne, and his neck was a bit longer than average. He was wearing a pure blue v-neck shirt, and a pair of cargo shorts. He looked pretty shaken.

"Bro," Zach said, "are you alright? Where is everyone else?" When Greg saw Zach, he immediately jumped up and ran to him. "Oh god, thank god you're ok!" Greg grabbed Zach into a crushing hug.

"Whoa, man, where's everyone else?" Zach pushed Greg so he could look at his face. He looked to have dirt all over it, and a glazed look in his eyes.

"I have no idea where my parents are, but David's over here in the next room. Come on, I'll take you to him."

Greg led Zach out of the kitchen, down a hall way, and into the master bedroom. David was on the bed, lying down. David was 18, and had the body of an athlete. He had a buzz cut, the standard for military trainees. David had come back from basic training for his Mom's birthday, and had returned home to see the apocalypse happen. It appeared that he had a bite mark on his upper left arm. As soon as Zach saw it from the doorway, he stopped and grabbed Greg's arm.

"Stop!" Zach exclaimed. He turned towards Greg with a fearful expression, full of despair. "Did he get bitten by one of them?"

At the question, Greg started to get panicky. "Yeah, but he'll be ok. He's always ok. He'll live. He'll get through this. Just like always."

Zach gave Greg a stern look. "Greg, you and I both know what I have to do. He's gonna turn pretty soon from the look of his bite. I have to kill him."

Greg immediately started pleading. "NO! NO, YOU CAN'T! PLEASE!"

Zach gave him a look of sadness. "I have to…" he whispered. He unlatched Greg's arm from his own, and started walking toward the prone form of his cousin. As he did so, Greg adopted a look of pure rage. Who was he to decide his brother's fate, to play god? It was his brother, damn it! He looked around the room, and found a stray gun, David's own, and picked it up, determined to save his brother. His arm rose, and with it his intent to kill Zach.

Zach saw all of this in the reflection in the TV screen across from the bed, and dove to the side. He was too slow by just a fraction of a second. The bullet grazed his cheek, leaving a moderately deep gash and a burn to his face. The bullet crashed through window and into the nearby house, alerting the other undead to their location. He turned his head incredulously and looked at Greg, who stood over him with a look of complete and utter rage adorning his face. "Are you insane?!"

"I SAID NO!" Greg raised his gun again, but Zach was faster. He kicked Greg's feet out from under him, and scrambled to his feet, kicking David's gun out of Greg's hand. He rushed to the other side of the room. Greg got back up, and picked up a stray piece of broken glass on his way. He ran towards Zach, his makeshift knife raised above his head as he let out a war cry. Zach raised his Tokarev. "Don't make me do this, Greg!"

Greg ignored Zach's plea, and continued the charge. Zach looked away, a look of pain on his face, as he pulled the trigger. His bullet traveled the 3 feet distance to Greg's neck, and hit him straight in the throat. He fell to the ground, a look of shock on his already cooling face. He gurgled out his last breath, and finally stopped breathing.

Zach looked on, as a single tear fell down his face. He walked toward the body with a sluggish gait. He reached for Greg's lifeless neck, and pulled out a key on a necklace. He broke the necklace, stood up, and started walking out. Suddenly, he heard a growl, and movement behind him. He closed his eyes, aimed his gun behind him, and shot the offending body: the reanimated form of David. He sent up a small prayer for one of his closest friends. '_Requiescant in pace, buddy.'_ He walked to the closet, and opened it with the key. He was greeted with the site of dozens of guns, and 10s of thousands of bullets. He nodded, satisfied. Just as he was about to go to the van to open the doors, something caught his attention. That was the presence of a British commando knife hanging on the wall, and a large broadsword leaning against the wall. After a moment of consideration, he grabbed both. He strapped the knife to his right thigh and the broadsword on his back. He loaded all the guns and ammo into the van, walked out of the house, and closed the door. He never looked back.

_**(Flashback end)**_

By the time Zach was done, they had searched the school from head to toe, and were standing back in the courtyard. When they had gotten back, they found Nick awake again. After they got ready, Zach turned toward his friends, a tired look in his eyes. "Alright, looks like no one is here. You guys go to the van; I'll meet you guys there."

Serena looked at Zach with worry. "Hey, are you…"

Zach interrupted her with surprising anger. "I said go!"

Serena, and the rest of them, recoiled at the sound of his harsh voice. It was rare for Zach to lash out like that.

Serena held her hands up in a placating manner. "Alright….I'll be in the van." Nick just nodded, and followed Serena. Katherine, on the other hand, stayed behind. Zach, who felt her eyes on him, sighed, turned away, and looked to the sky. "Looks like its gonna rain today."

Katherine looked up to the sky, and found nothing to support what Zach said. The sky was clear, the sun was shining, and birds were chirping; a rather ironic scenery for the situation.

"No it won't. It s a perfectly clear day." Katherine said. At that, Zach turned around, showing the tears streaming down his pain filled face.

"No…..no it's not." With that last sentence, Zach finally was overwhelmed. He fell to his knees, and broke down in body wracking sobs. He collapsed in on himself, hugging himself even as he was on the ground. Katherine rushed toward him, and wrapped her arms around, whispering in his ear. "It's ok. You're not alone. I'm here…"

This just seemed to make him cry harder. She had seen Zach's promise to keep his people safe. She made a vow of her own that day. She vowed to never let this happen to him, or anyone else in the group, ever again. THAT was a promise of a life time.

**(Update July 27, 2013, 4:45 for improvements **

**I am so sorry for the late update. I had some problems with inspiration for the story and with just life in general. I also have other stories and plot bunnies running around, so once again, I apologize profusely. **


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